Beyond Binge Eating Healing Food Addiction with Internal Family Systems & Trauma-Informed Therapy | Vanessa Kredler
In this week’s episode, we’re joined by Vanessa Kredler—certified food addiction counselor, trauma-informed therapist, and passionate advocate for recovery.
With a background in psychotherapy, internal family systems (IFS), and somatic healing, Vanessa offers a deeply compassionate and structured approach to working with food addiction.
Here’s what we’ll cover in the video:
From Addiction to Structure: Vanessa shares her personal recovery journey, including how food addiction impacted her life—and why structure became her foundation for healing.
Redefining Recovery & Abstinence: What’s the difference between recovery and abstinence?
Neurodivergence & Food Addiction: How food addiction can be a form of neurodivergence—and why recovery isn’t always about psychology, but about rewiring patterns through lifestyle and support.
Creating Sustainable Food Plans: Why working with a team—and never going it alone—can be helpful for long-term abstinence, and how to adapt your plan as your body and life change.
Internal Family Systems (IFS) in Recovery: How Vanessa uses IFS to help clients identify protective parts, soothe inner conflicts, and build trust with the self—especially for those struggling with bingeing and food-related shame.
If you’ve ever felt like traditional approaches don’t quite fit, or if you’re curious about how structure, trauma recovery, and somatic work intersect—this conversation will leave you feeling seen and supported.
🗣️ Contact and Follow Vanessa here:
https://www.vanessakredler.com/
https://www.instagram.com/vanessakredler/
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0:00 - Intro
1:15 – What got you into counseling for food addiction and trauma?
5:13 – When did you realize it was food addiction, not just emotional eating?
6:21 – Identification with addiction as foundational/beneficial for her recovery
7:03 – Volume addiction, weighing, measuring
8:21 – Do you still follow the same structure in your recovery?
9:30 – Explaining using small foods scales at restaurants
10:37 – Being flexible over time but still maintaining structure in her food plan
11:47 – What signs told you it was time to change your food plan?
15:37 – Despite being in long term recovery, she still leans on support and wants to be transparent with her support
16:16 – Who helped you define your food quantities?
18:41 – How do you define recovery vs abstinence?
22:35 – How do you choose which method to use with a client?
27:41 – How can Internal Family Systems support recovery from food addiction?
31:32 – Parts work (IFS) and eating disorder treatment
33:35 – Parts work (IFS) and food addiction (versus binge eating)
36:35 – Do clients come to you wanting to lose weight?
39:38 – Where to find Vanessa Kredler online
#FoodAddictionRecovery #FoodAddiction #BingeEatingRecovery
Disclaimer: The information on this channel is for educational purposes and is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice or therapy. The views and opinions expressed by podcast guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Kristina Dobyns or Beyond Binge Eating.